Facebook Blocks Ad Blockers, Grants Users’ More Ad Control

Facebook, the social media giant is now showing advertisements on its desktop site to users who are currently running ad blockers on their computers. The statement was passed by the company on Tuesday.

Ad Blockers are being used by approximately 200 million people worldwide, on their desktop computers. The reason behind the rise of such applications is the fact that ads contribute towards a disruptive browsing experience and increase the exposure of the device to security risks and malware. Around 420 million smartphone users are also noted to be using ad blockers. These figures were revealed by anti-ad-blocking startup named, PageFair. The policy adopted by Facebook for pushing out ads is one of the strongest taken by any company in the Silicon Valley. This is notable because the policy would affect Facebook’s 1.7 Billion user base.

Facebook’s new policy is fairly simple to grasp. The company is working on making ads looks similar to regular posts which deceive the ad-blocking programs. Ad blockers have sparked an outrage amongst internet users. Many people perceive ads to be an unnecessary annoyance that consumes their bandwidth. However, such programs pose a threat to many online publishers such as The Wall Street Journal and Forbes as these companies rely majorly on revenues generating through digital advertising. In order to tackle the situation, many publishers such as Wired and Forbes have adopted an anti-ad blocking policy which requests the users to turn off or pause their ad blockers in order to view the content available on their sites. It must be pointed out that accessing Facebook on smartphones (both mobile web browsers and Facebook’s own mobile apps) displays ads that cannot be hidden with the usage of ad blockers. Facebook relies massively on its advertisement as it contributes to the company’s paid revenue which totaled at $18 Billion, last year.

Facebook has stated that in order to ensure smooth experience of the users viewing ads, the company has granted users with the power to customize the ads they view. The company further said that advertisements are now delivered in a tailor-made fashion based entirely on the user’s preferences. Needless to say, Facebook Advertisers are highly pleased with the change.